I have become a caricature. Today i am the world's most obvious backpacker. I've barely slept in two days and i look dreadful. The white of my right eye is pink - i assume it's conjunctivitus and need a pharmacist to confirm this. I haven't showered. My skin is tanned, but through the grime it's hard to tell. My ankles are peppered with mosquito bites. A cloth bag dangles from my shoulders containing my guide book, camera, wallet and tiger-balm. My shorts are dirty and a three inch tear at the kneecap widens every time i look at it. The back pockets is hanging off, revealing my pants to the world. I'm wearing a Led Zeppelin tour vest from a gig which occurred six years before i was born. I can't even get changed as i have no accommodation here and my backpack is in storage until tonight.

I arrived here at 6am following an uncomfortable, sleep-deprived overnight coach trip from Phi Phi. I leave again at 6pm on a similar journey to Chang Mai. So today, i've been killing time - but what a place to do it!

Watching Bangkok wake up is quite an experience. Vendors push their carts into prime position - unless they slept at the site of their pitch. The smell of freshly prepared breakfasts fills the air. Car boots are opened to reveal load upon load of gaily coloured clothing and knick-knacks. Shop fronts are brushed and scrubbed down as the noise of the city steadily builds. Bing bags full of oranges are being squeezed into plastic bottles and peddled to Bangkok's early risers. Khao San road still sways unsteadily as the last of the revellers make their way home through the workers and merchants. Buddhist monks walk serenely through the chaos - an oasis of calm swaddled in orange robes.

A trip to the zoo seemed an ideal way to while away a couple of hours, so i set out at a brisk pace which very quickly slowed to a sweaty shuffle. Progress was halted completely at almost every crossroads until i remembered that in Bangkok the safest way to avoid death on the roads is to inhibit a level of confidence which would get you killed anywhere else in the world. Striding through the purring engines with scant regard for your own safety is the only way to get anywhere.

For the princely some of 100 baht i saw beguilingly beautiful giraffes, sweating hippos and all manner of bears and raccoons. The stars of the show were undoubtedly the animals who were less adversely affected by the heat - hats off to the red pandas and langurs (google them if you don't know what they are - they're beautiful creatures) who frolicked and posed for the punters. But when you're in Thailand, it's all about the tigers and the elephants. Unfortunately only 200 wild tigers remain here, so it was nice to be able to get so close to such an awe-inspiring creature. Elephants, of course, are a far more common site in Thailand - but it's still humbling to actually feed one.

Wilting in the heat, i took my place by the side of a giant lake. A fountain sprayed a flume of water which caught in the wind and provided a cooling mist - welcome relief. It seemed that my neighbours were enjoying it as well - two elderly gentleman thrust their faces forward into the cold shower, whilst a couple of metre-long lizards enjoyed the shade alongside them.

Back down Soi Rambuttri (all the atmosphere of Khao San Road but cheaper) i bumped into Laurie, an old friend from work. The world may be a massive place, but the backpacking community is surprisingly small.

So with four hours to go until i venture into the northern jungle, it's time to get my eye checked out before heading to the bar. A skinful of ice cold Changs will hopefully lead to a better night's sleep tonight...